The Völva
by kellymanning
Summary: Eva didn't know what she was getting into when she agreed to be a nursing and scientific consultant for SHIELD. She certainly wasn't ready to be called into the Avengers Initiative... after all, she's just a nurse. But SHIELD is rarely upfront with their secrets, and hers was no exception.
1. Chapter 1

Evangeline Ackerman was just your average 23-year-old nursing student at NYU. Drowning in student debt and searching for a residency program that would help her, eventually, pay off the loans.

As of now, two weeks before her graduation, Eva had exactly one job offer. A two-year residency at the Northwestern Medicine Northwest Suburbs Nursing Residency Program, near Chicago.

Eva let out a frustrated groan as she once again checked her position of the NYU residency waiting list. She hadn't been accepted by a variety of programs, but that was the rejection that hurt the most.

Ever since she made the move to New York four years ago, Eva had been drawn to the magnetism of the city and all of the diversity. Plus, the food was amazing.

She knew that she would take the job in Chicago, but she felt conflicted to be leaving this place that she considered home.

It was the sound of a knock at her door that drew her out of her thoughts. Getting up, Eva walked across her small studio apartment to answer the door.

"Hello?" she asked, shocked to see a man she hadn't seen before in her life.

"Are you Evangeline Ackerman?" the man said officially.

"Yes," Eva said, not opening the door too much. "And you are?"

"I am Agent Phil Coulson," he said. "May I come in?"

"Agent?" Eva asked, raising an eyebrow. "Yeah, I'm going to need to see some ID."

"Of course," the man said, pulling out an ID and showing it to her. Eva tentatively looked at it, and it seemed official enough, so she let him in.

"SHIELD?" Eva asked, opening the door so he could step inside. "That short for something?"

"Strategic Homeland Intervention, Enforcement, and Logistics Division… we had to shorten it."

"Thank God," Eva said, chuckling. "You want coffee or something, Agent…"

"Coulson," he said, "and no, thank you."

"Of course," Eva said. "Now, I'm assuming there's a reason that you're here? Doesn't seem like everyday a government agent appears on your doorstep."

"Yes," he said. "We need your assistance."

"With?"

"That's classified."

"Wow," Eva said, grabbing a glass of water. "This is why no one trusts the government, you know. You want me to help you, but I can't know what it is?"

"We have a patient, and a former agent of ours said we could trust you."

"Is there anything you can tell me?" Eva asked.

"Only that this is a matter of upmost importance," Agent Coulson said.

"And why should I help you?" Eva asked.

"Because you want to stay in New York," the agent said nonchalantly. "You help us, we can guarantee you stay here."

Eva froze at his words. She contemplated what he said. Staying in New York was everything to her, so maybe… just maybe…

"Why me?" Eva asked. "There are tons of people, way more qualified than me… I mean, I haven't even graduated yet."

"You had a glowing recommendation," Agent Coulson said. "Your background check was clean, you're educated, you are close to where we need you, and you don't work for your own interests – you want to help people."

"Where would I be going?"

"You'd stay in the city, and it's essentially a check-up," Coulson said.

"When?"

"Now," Coulson said, "if you agree."

Eva looked at him and took a deep breath.

"What the hell," she said. "I'm in… Just don't kill me or anything when we're done, okay?"

"We won't, Ms. Ackerman," Agent Coulson said, a chuckle escaping him. "Please follow me."

"Also, please call me Eva… Ms. Ackerman makes me sound like my mom," Eva said, following Agent Coulson, locking the door tightly behind her. He led her to a black car, complete with tinted windows and an equally stoic driver.

"So," Eva as she stepped into the car. "Since I agreed, do I get to know who my patient is?"

"Not yet," Agent Coulson said. "First, we have to do some paperwork… an NDA…"

"Very classified," Eva mused. "I can sign it right now?"

"Perfect," he said, handing her a folder with papers enclosed. She scanned over the documents. It seemed pretty typical nondisclosure agreement stuff, and nothing immediately stuck out to her.

"Alrighty," Eva said, signing the papers. "There you are."

"Thank you," he said. "Now, how familiar are you with American history?"

"I took classes in high school and the standard gen eds for undergrad," Eva said, "so not much more than your average person."

"How familiar are you with Captain America?"

"The war hero, right?" Eva said. "I think had to write an essay about him… he went down in a place at the tail end of World War II, right?"

"Yes," Agent Coulson said. "But we just fished him out of the ocean, and it appears he survived."

"What?"

"What you don't know about Captain America," Agent Coulson continued, "is that he was a normal man from Brooklyn named Steve Rogers. He was a part of a trial with a serum that ultimately changed his DNA and cells… he is in perfect health and hasn't aged… the ice preserved him."

"Holy shit," Eva murmured, before furrowing her eyebrows. "Wait, you're not telling me that freaking _Captain America_ is my patient, right?"

"I am."

"Don't you need someone more qualified in the study on this? I mean, the cellular changes alone are way above my-"

"We know you have an extensive background in science," he said. "Besides, you already agreed."

Eva looked at the man next to her, and in spite of the situation, cracked a smile.

"You're a hardass," Eva said, "you know that, right?"

"I've been told."

"Lucky for you," she said. "I tend to like hardasses."

The two sat in silence, until the car lurched to a stop. Stepping out of the car, Eva was greeted with a tall black building that she had often passed in her runs in New York.

"So, this is what this building is," Eva murmured, following Coulson inside and onto an elevator, ignoring the gazes of officially dressed agents, no-doubt wondering why a small blonde woman in leggings and an old sweatshirt was inside their top-secret building.

And it was in that moment that Eva wished that she had changed into something more… appropriate for the situation.

"Right through here," he said as they made their way down a hallway. He opened the door and as Eva stepped inside, she was greeted with the gaze of two men.

One was a tall, intimidating man, whose presence was only made more intimidating by the eyepatch he wore. The other was a muscular, blonde man who looked deeply confused. Even without the mask and costume, Eva was able to figure out that the blonde was Steve Rogers.

"Ms. Ackerman," the intimidating man said. "I'm glad you decided to join us. I'm Director Fury."

"Pleasure to meet you," Eva said, her voice soft and quiet. "And you must be Mr. Rogers."

"Steve," he said. "Call me Steve, ma'am."

"Only if you call me Eva," she said, before turning to Director Fury. "So, what exactly is it that you need me to do that your doctors here can't do?"

"Give him a check-up," Director Fury said. "Rogers is clearly uncomfortable with SHIELD right now, so we thought a third-party might be a better avenue."

"Alright," Eva said. "If he's worried about security and trust, then I do have one request… All results and files I do on him… They go on a private server. You can't touch them unless I have his okay or it is immediately pressing information. Understood?" She met Director Fury's eyes, her blood running cold.

He didn't speak and Eva began to freak-out inside. Maybe she shouldn't have been so stern. After all, this was a spy organization that had taken her from her studio apartment… They could kill her and make it look like an accident… no, make it look like she never existed. Maybe she should apologize or-

"Deal," Fury said. "I'll have it set-up within the hour. Now get to work, Ms. Ackerman." He turned and left the room with Coulson trailing after him.

"They're intimidating, aren't they?" Eva asked, turning to face Steve.

He didn't speak, merely nodded.

"Okay," Eva said. "I'm just going to grab some stuff from the cabinets over there."

Once again, he only nodded.

Eva silently grabbed her items and returned, grabbing the sheets on the counter. As she suspected, they were medical forms for her to fill out.

"Okay," Eva said. "I just have to take some blood and go over a few things with you about your medical history."

"Sounds good," Steve said, his posture stiffening.

"You okay?" Eva asked, grateful that he had spoken. Quiet appointments always sucked.

"Never liked getting blood drawn," he said.

"Right," Eva said, thumbing through his outdated medical history. "Before the serum, you had a lot of medical issues… Any of those come back up when you were on-duty?"

"No," Steve said.

"This'll pinch," she said, disinfecting the injection site. She inserted the needle and began to draw blood. "And the worst part is done!"

"Thanks," he said, his form still stiff.

"Are you okay?" Eva asked, noticing his rigid posture.

"Yeah," he said.

"Must have been quite a shock," Eva said, watching his facial expression as she spoke. "Waking up to a completely different world."

"You have no idea," he said, but from the look on his face, Eva knew his mind was elsewhere.

"Now, we're done with that," Eva said as she pulled out the needle and quickly put a piece of gauze over it. Before Steve could get up, Eva had put a bright green band-aid on the site.

"Really?"

"It was either that or Hello Kitty," Eva said. "It's what they had stocked up." She shot him a look and he shook his head slightly. Eva was just relieved to see him loosen up.

"Alrighty," Eva said, handing him a few papers, "if you'll just fill out those, I can let you go."

"That's it?"

"That's it," Eva said. "I'm sure they'll get you to someone far more qualified than me… I'm a temporary fix, just to make sure you're not broken."

The two sat in silence for a few moments with Eva going over his old files and him filing out the forms before Steve broke the silence.

"Where are you from?"

"Wisconsin," Eva said. "A small town called La Crosse… it's actually how I got interested in medicine. There's a small school called Viterbo that had a partnership with a clinic that let high schoolers volunteer during the summers and weekends… Found out that I loved it, and then I ended up becoming a nurse." She glanced up from the papers to see him staring at her. "I was rambling, wasn't I? Sorry."

"No," he said. "It's nice to not be treated like some… superhero."

"As far as I'm concerned," Eva said. "You're a hero, but you're a person first."

Silence once again enveloped the pair and ended as he handed her the papers.

"I think that's all I need," Eva said, gesturing to the door for him to leave. "Good luck Steve."

"Thanks," he said, giving her a smile and leaving. Eva went over the forms for a few minutes when the door opening drew her attention.

"The server is set-up and ready for you," Agent Coulson said.

"Awesome," Eva said, walking over to the computer. "I'll just go ahead and put this in, and then I'll be out of your hair."

"That's actually what we wanted to talk to you about," another voice said, and Eva recognized it as Director Fury. She turned to face the pair.

"What?"

"I told you we could guarantee you would stay in New York City," Coulson said. "We'd like to offer you a consultant position with SHIELD."

"But… I'm literally a nurse," Eva said, furrowing her eyebrows. "Don't you guys need doctors and surgeons?"

"We have plenty of those," Director Fury said. "We need someone who has a flexible schedule to consult on issues of medicine and science alike… you have the background and personality required."

"Wow," Eva said, sitting down in a chair. "That's… that's a lot to take in."

"We have great benefits," Agent Coulson said, "and we would pay for travel that you would need to do. We also would be willing to decrease the amount of information we keep in your personnel file."

"Why?" Eva asked.

"You like your privacy," Coulson said.

Eva looked at the two men. Taking this job meant stability and staying in New York… but she couldn't shake the feeling that the two men were hiding something from her.

But she knew what she was going to do.

"Alright," she said. "I'm in."

So, that's how Eva ended up graduating from NYU and working for one of the most secret intelligence organizations in the world, a decision that would ultimately impact the rest of her life.


	2. Chapter 2

If there was one thing Eva hated, it was that damned cliché. You know, the one where the woman suddenly meets the man of her dreams and the key to all her current problems. That cliché was the primary reason why she slammed shut the book she was reading and set it down on the seat next to her in the taxi. Thankfully, the taxi driver didn't react.

"Another good female character ruined by the incessant need for a male love interest," she mumbled, looking the novel with a certain distaste, the kind of distaste one might look at a book if their mother had fed them romance novels since they were twelve years old.

Needless to say, she was _not _one for a cliché romance, no matter how much her mother begged her to 'give it a try.' She should have known the plot of the book the second her mother handed her the red, hardback novel with a gold, royal font entitled _The Queen of Spades._

To be fair, her mother was an amazing writer. After all, with three best-sellers in the past five years, this novel would likely join the ranks of her previous books, _The Devil's Grin_, _The Hill of Night_, and, Eva's least favorite, _Between Fire and Satin_. All novels were incredibly well-written, with detailed, intricate plots that resembled that of spiderwebs. Each character was developed well, each having lives and wants outside of the constraints of the novel's plot. However, in Eva's opinion, the female protagonist's development and sense of self was often sacrificed to add in an unnecessary, "heartthrob," male character, but she did understand it was to increase book sales, especially in the younger female market.

This is not to say that Eva didn't read the occasional romance novel, but she was extremely picky about it. She wanted character-development in conjunction with a love interest. She believed that a good novel could have both, without sacrificing the other. But if one did have to be sacrificed, she would prefer the love interest.

Almost if by providence, Eva's phone interrupted her thoughts of distaste for clichés. It was none other than Emma Ackerman. Her mother's youthful appearance light up the screen, her piercing blue eyes shining through the LED screen, a stark contrast to her dark hair.

"Hey mom," Eva said, grabbing her bag and her luggage (and the novel) as she paid her taxi fare. "What's up?"

"I was wondering if you started my book?" Emma asked, her voice bright and bubbly. Despite having a 24-year-old daughter, Eva's mother didn't let on her to her age.

"Yeah," Eva said, studying the cover in distaste as she stepped out the taxi. "Really nice cover."

"You think so?" she asked excitedly. "Jonathan will be so glad to hear it!" Jonathan was her mom's publicist, and Eva had never liked the man; he was insanely serious and condescending.

"I'm sure it'll sell out very quickly," Eva said, walking down the street as she balanced her phone with attempting to shove the book into her purse.

"So, you think it's good? How far are you into it?"

"Uh, just a few chapters in," Eva said, lying through her teeth. She never wanted to hurt her mother's feelings. So, she would stall until she could find some quality of the romance that she appreciated.

"I'm so glad that you like it so far!" her mother gushed, excitement oozing from her.

"When is it going on sale?"

"Next month… The third, I think," her mother said, before switching topics, as she often did. She could never stay on one topic for very long. "How is work?"

"It's good," Eva said. "You know how it is."

"You know," her mother said, "if you ever wanted, I could get you-"

"God, not this again," Eva said, grabbing out her keys to her apartment as she approached the building. "Believe it or not, I do not need-"

"I am just saying," her mother said, "I care about you, and your job right now… it's worrisome… and you used to love writing…"

"Mom, nursing is what I love _now_," Eva said, entering the building. "I love New York, I love my job, no matter how much you might not."

"Evangeline," her mother said, using her daughter's full name, which resulted in an eyeroll from Eva, "I just worry-"

"It's Eva, and you shouldn't… I have amazing coworkers and the work I am doing… it's helping so many people," Eva said, making her way up the stairs, before adding, "And I'm not even doing the dangerous work… All I do is consult on science matters related to medicine and health for them."

"I know… Just please be safe?"

"Always," Eva said. "I got to go… I'll talk to you later?"

"Yes," her mother said. "Call me when you finish the book! I want to know all your thoughts about it!"

"I will," Eva said, unlocking her door. "Love you mom."

"Bye, I love you too," her mom said, before the phone beeped, indicating the call had ended.

Eva entered her apartment and was immediately met by her beloved dog.

"Penny!" Eva said, a smile spreading across her face as she was met with the familiar face. "Did you miss me? Did you?" Eva dropped to her knees to meet the German Shepherd, who nuzzled her affectionately. Eva had gotten her a few months after she graduated, deciding that she needed something to come home to.

After thoroughly petting Penny, or Penelope when she misbehaved, Eva locked the door behind her before making her way to the small kitchen. When she opened the dishwasher, she couldn't get to and from the kitchen, but such was a common occurrence in New York. Opening the fridge, she resolved to go grocery shopping the next morning, as her fridge was bare, with the exception of some spoilt yogurt on the third shelve and a jug of apple juice.

"I think I'll be ordering in tonight," Eva said, glancing at the duffel bag that she had to unpack. God, she hated it when she had to consult on projects that were happening on the other side of the earth… For once, could she just be sent down to Florida?

Just as she reached for her duffel, her phone rang. Immediately, from the one tone that droned on, she groaned knowing what it was.

"Coulson," she said, answering the phone quickly, "I literally just stepped into my apartment… so the world better be about to explode."

"You know I wouldn't call you so soon after a consult, if it wasn't important," he said.

"Yeah, right…" she said, remembering every time that she had barely stepped off the plane that she had been called for a new assignment. "What is it?"

"We need you to come in."

"Where? Zimbabwe? Iraq? Russia? Please tell me it's not Brazil again."

"We need you at the Helicarrier."

"You know what a nightmare Brazil was for– wait, what?" Eva said, sitting straight from her position on the floor. "I thought that-"

"Your security clearance just got raised. We'll have Agent Hill at your apartment in 30 minutes."

"Coulson," Eva said, "what is going on? Why am I being brought on? For Christ's sake, I'm a consultant."

"I'll brief you when you get here. Just pack."

"Yeah, yeah," Eva said. "I'll be ready."

"Good," Coulson said, hanging up. Eva removed the phone from her ear, staring at the now dark screen.

"The Helicarrier?" she murmured, sitting still for a second, letting it process. A few seconds had passed before she leapt into action. "Parker is going to _kill_ me… I'm sorry Penny, Parker's going keep an eye on you, okay baby?"

Eva slowly made her way to her neighbor's door and tentatively knocked. The door was promptly answered by Parker Goodman, an older woman, wearing her trademark round, purple glasses.

"Again?" she asked, giving Eva a knowing look.

"Yeah," Eva said. "I'm so sorry, and if it's too much, I could get her at a kennel by-" she started but the woman waved her complaints away.

"It's fine… I remember my SHIELD days… the least I can do… where to this time?" she asked.

"The Helicarrier," Eva said. "Not sure why…"

"Must be important," she said.

"I guess… you know the drill?"

"Emergency cash under the sink, dog food in the coat closet, wine on top of the fridge, and gun under the TV stand," Parker listed, "I know… Now go get ready… I'm sure you have to leave soon."

"Thanks again Parker," Eva said, "You're a doll!" Parker gave her a smile as she shut the door. Eva rushed back to her apartment, throwing her dirty clothes in her duffel bag into the laundry hamper, which was _long_ overdue… add that to the list of things she had to do when she got back.

She rushed into her room and grabbed a few things she needed: clothes, toiletries, a snack for the road, and her wallet/badge. She had just finished stuffing her stuff into her bag when a knock tore her attention to the door. Opening it, Eva was greeted with Agent Maria Hill staring at her.

"I'm just finishing packing," Eva said. "Any idea why I'm being brought in?"

"Coulson wants to brief you himself," Hill said.

"Ah," Eva said, zipping her bag tightly, "Nice redirection technique…"

"I try," Hill said, letting a smile break across her features. "You good?"

"Considering I have no idea what I am doing," Eva said, "I'm fantastic… Ask me after Coulson briefs me and I am sure that the response will be different."

"Come on," she said. "Our ride's out front."

"One sec," Eva said, kneeling on the ground to Penny. "Be a good girl for Parker, okay? I'll be home soon, alright baby?" Giving her a ruffle on her head, Eva grabbed her bag and followed Hill out of the apartment, locking it tightly.

"Parker watches her?" Hill asked.

"Yeah," Eva said. "She offered after the stint in Iraq…"

"That one was a long one."

"Two months… I nearly cried when I got the kennel bill, and she offered the next day," Eva said, remembering the day the gray-haired woman knocked on her door.

"Nice lady… even better agent," she murmured as the pair made their way to the black car, complete with tinted windows.

"Yeah," Eva said. "She's the reason I'm in SHIELD because she told them I had 'spunk' and apparently that impressed them?"

"She spoke highly of you," Hill said as they got into the car. "If I were you, I'd rest up… This is going to be a long and rough assignment."

"What shit show is Coulson getting me involved with now?" Eva asked jokingly, but Hill didn't respond, just gave her a blank look. "Guess I'll just close my eyes for a bit…"

Shutting her eyes, Eva realized how tired she was… She let herself enter a dreamless sleep. It ended all too soon, as the car lurched to a stop.

"Now the fun part," Hill said. "Flying." Eva glanced out of the window quizzically, seeing a small plane.

"You're not flying, right?"

"Shut it, Eva," Hill said. "That was _one_ time."

"And one time is enough," Eva said, remembering the time that Hill had to fly her to Rome for an assignment because all the other pilots were on other, more pressing assignments.

"Yes," Hill said, getting out of the car, "I am not flying, but I'll have you know that that incident was a one-time thing… Now get your ass out of the car."

Eva grabbed her duffel and followed Hill to the plane where, sure enough, someone else was in the pilot's seat.

"Should be a quick flight," Hill said, "but there isn't great reception on the Helicarrier…"

"Thanks," Eva said, grabbing her phone to text her mother. "You know how she gets."

Hill merely nodded as Eva typed out a short message for her mother.

**Just got called in for consult- will call when I can. Promise I'll be safe. Love you. And yes, I brought the book with me. ;)**

Clicking send, Eva leaned back into her seat as the pilot began the flight. She looked up to ask Hill a question, to see the woman had closed her eyes. Deciding it was best to use her time wisely, Eva grabbed the novel from her bag and opened up to the page that had been slammed only an hour or so earlier.

She had gotten through a few chapters when the small plane began to descend, waking up Hill. She still hadn't found the quality in the romance novel that might make it more palatable.

"We're almost there," Hill said, not even batting an eye to having just waken up.

"Agents are weird," Eva mumbled, shaking her head as the plane's descent increased. "Jesus, I hate landings."

"You're literally on a plane at least four times a month," Hill said, raising an eyebrow.

"Doesn't make it any worse," Eva said, trying to ignore the slightly elevated heartbeat that she could now feel threatening to beat out of her chest.

And then the plane hit the ground, getting a small yelp from Eva. Hill shook her head, trying to hide her laughter.

"Shove it," Eva mumbled, as the plane slowed. A few minutes later, the door opened and Eva was greeted by none other than Phil Coulson.

"Thanks Agent Hill," he said, nodding to the female agent behind Eva. "I can take Eva from here."

"Hey Coulson," Eva said, lugging out her duffel as she approached the agent. "You going to tell me why I'm here at… 8 in the morning? Guess those rides and flights were longer than I thought."

"That's a conversation we will have after we get your bag put away," he said. "Follow me." He turned abruptly, resulting in Eva chasing after him.

"Why can't you tell me now?" she asked.

"Because Director Fury is involved in this conversation," Coulson said.

"Did I do something?" Eva asked, swallowing and trying to hide her discomfort. She had only met Director Fury once, when she was first brought on as a consultant for SHIELD Needless to say, he scared the everlasting crap out of her.

"No," he said, showing Eva down a hallway. "That's where you will be staying. If you would just throw your stuff in there, we can get going."

Eva, quite literally, threw her stuff into the room, not even glancing to see what it looked like.

"Let's go," Eva said. "I swear to God, if I'm getting fired and this was all-"

"You're not being fired," Coulson said. "Why would we raise your clearance to fire you?"

"I don't know," Eva admitted as they made their way down multiple hallways and up a few different stairs, before they were standing outside a door, which Eva knew led to Director Fury's office.

"Ready?" Coulson asked.

"As ready as I'll ever be," Eva said. Coulson gave her a small smile as he opened the door. Eva stepped in and made eye contact with Fury.

"Ms. Ackerman," the man said, standing tall at his desk and motioning to a seat in front of her, "please, sit down."


	3. Chapter 3

"Director Fury," Eva said, sitting down. "It's nice to see you again." Inside, Eva was freaking out. He was one of the most powerful and intimidating men in the world… she knew from past experience.

"Do you know why you have been called in?" he asked, not beating around the bush. Almost immediately, Eva was acutely aware of how serious this was. Her hand found its way to her hair, playing with it as anxiety riddled her body. And suddenly, that 3 a.m. decision to dye the tips of her hair pink three weeks ago seemed wildly inappropriate.

"No sir," Eva said, pulling her hand down to her lap. "But I was told that I would be briefed once I got here?"

"Yes," Fury said, motioning to Coulson. "Agent Coulson?"

"Sir," Coulson said, nodding as he stepped forward.

"Ms. Ackerman," Coulson said, using her last name as a formality, "What you are about to learn is extremely confidential and is not to be repeated outside of this Helicarrier facility, understood?"

"Yes," Eva said, ignoring the urge to sink into her chair.

"Yesterday at 2200 hours," Coulson said, "an enemy acquired a dangerous object from a SHIELD facility, turning agents and a consultant in the process… Erik Selvig, I believe you have met him before?

"Yeah," Eva said, "we consulted on that one case in Greenland… the one with the chemist student?"

"Right," Coulson said, clearing his throat. "As a result of this incident, we have since activated the Avengers Initiative."

"Okay? What is that?" Eva asked, shaking her head. "And what does this have to do with me? I mean, I'm just a consultant."

"You," Coulson said, "are included in this initiative."

"What?" Eva asked as Coulson handed her a file. Flipping through it, Eva was shocked at the profiles included in it. "Iron Man, Doctor Banner, Captain America…" Her voice trailed off as she began to skim the information.

"There's a lot in those files you won't find anywhere else," Fury said.

"Why am I in here?" Eva asked, looking at the two men with concern. "I'm literally not like any of these people… Like Iron Man? He's a genius!"

"You are included," Coulson said, leaning against the wall, "because of your education background."

"I'm a nursing and chemistry consultant for SHIELD," Eva said plainly. "Don't you guys have tons of _doctors_ who are more trained than I am?"

"Some members of the team are untrusting of organizations like ours… It was proposed that we have someone not working for SHIELD be there to treat any injuries… someone like you," Coulson said, before adding, "But, there is no contractual obligation for you to do this, although the circumstances are similar to the case in which you were first brought in for."

"But," Fury said, "we think you are the best for this job."

Eva thought about it for a moment. She could just go home and be with her dog and have a few days off… But at the same time, she knew what she had to do. But something was bugging her about the situation… They could bring in any medical personnel and they had chosen a low-level, relatively-new consultant.

"I'm in," she said, grasping the files tightly. "When do I start?"

"Now," Fury said. "Seeing as our world is on the very of being plunged into war, we need you to start reviewing medical histories and begin preliminary testing… we don't know what we are dealing with, so we need to have everything on file for every one so that we are prepared for the worst possible contingency."

"Got it," Eva said, standing up. "Is there somewhere I should be?"

"First," Fury said, "you're going to meet the rest of the team. Then you'll be shown to your lab."

"Great," Eva said, ignoring her sweaty palms as she wiped them on her leggings. "I'll just follow one of you?"

"Me," Coulson said, opening the door and motioning for her to leave.

"Um, thank you Director Fury," Eva said, turning to face the ever-intimidating man before she left. "I look forward to working closely with SHIELD on this assignment."

Fury merely nodded as the two exited his office.

"Coulson," Eva said, giving him a light smack on the arm, "what the hell?"

"The Avengers Initiative was scrapped a while ago," he said, "so, technically, there was no reason to tell you."

"I know I've only been a part of SHIELD for, like, a year," Eva said, "but I feel like I deserved to know?"

"It's really not that big of a deal… By the way, there's more information on the situation in that file, so I would review before we get there," Coulson said. Eva began to skim the pages of files.

"This Loki guy," Eva asked as they turned a corner, "he turned Barton? Like, _the_ Clint Barton? Hawkeye?"

"Yeah," Coulson said, "using some Jedi-mind trick… stick thing."

"And we have this Loki guy in custody?" Eva clarified.

"Yeah, but we don't think he's going to talk," Coulson said.

"Do they usually?" Eva asked.

Coulson didn't reply, and, truthfully, Eva didn't know if that was a good or bad thing. She continued to skim the pages before they found themselves in what Eva assumed was the front of the Helicarrier, with open windows. Sitting around a table above multiple techs hard at work, was a table, lined with the people who Eva had just read about.

Black Widow AKA Natasha Romanov. Eva had read enough in her file to know that she was close with Clint, but her demeanor alone was majorly off-putting.

Doctor Bruce Banner AKA the Hulk. He had an incident with gamma radiation, trying to replicate the super soldier initiative, that resulted in the Hulk.

Thor AKA… Thor? He was the unexpected arrival on Earth years prior and his brother was Loki. Talk about family issues…

But it was the familiar blonde man that made Eva crack a smile.

Steve Rogers. She hadn't seen him since that initial consult a year ago.

All of their eyes were glued to tablets, as two voices could be made out.

"You threaten my world with war, you steal a force you can't hope to control, you talk about peace and you kill because it's fun… You have made me very desperate. You might not be glad that you did," came the familiar voice of Director Fury.

"Oh, it burns you to have come so close, to have the Tesseract, to have power – unlimited power, and for what? A… warm light for all mankind to share?" the new voice asked, and doing a headcount, Eva figured it was Loki. "And then to be reminded what real power is."

"Well, let me know if 'real power' wants a magazine or something," Fury said, his tone showing that he was not happy.

"He really grows on you, doesn't he?" Banner said, attempting to break the awkward silence that had overcome the room for a few seconds..

"Loki's going drag this out. So, Thor, what's his play?" Steve asked.

He has an army called the Chitauri. They're not of Asgard nor any world known. He means to lead the against your people. They will win him the Earth, in return, I suspect, for the Tesseract," Thor said.

"An army, from outer space?" Steve asked.

"So, he's building another portal. That's what he needs Erik Selvig for," Banner said. Eva felt increased concern for older man. He had been one of the first people she had met through SHIELD and he had been kind and patient.

"Selvig?" Thor asked.

"He's an astrophysicist," Banner clarified, before Thor interrupted.

"He's a friend."

"Loki has them under some kind of spell… along with one of ours," Natasha said, and Eva immediately felt for her. She hadn't met Natasha before, but she knew that she and Barton worked on missions together frequently. She also knew that Barton had something to do with Natasha's employment with SHIELD.

"I want to know why Loki let us take him. He's not leading an army from here," Steve said.

"I don't think we should be focusing on Loki. That guy's brain is a bag full of cats…you can small crazy on him," Banner said, and Eva found herself nodding.

"Have care how you speak. Loki is beyond reason but he is of Asgard, and he is my brother," Thor said, his voice warning.

"He killed eighty people in two days," Natasha said bluntly.

"He's adopted," Thor said, his voice sounding a tad embarrassed.

I think it's about the mechanics. Iridium, what do they need the Iridium for?" Banner asked. When no one spoke, Eva answered.

"It's a stabilizing agent," she said and all eyes turned to her. Before they could ask anything, a voice behind her spoke. She gave Steve a small wave, and he returned the sentiment.

"Means the portal wont collapse on itself like it did at SHIELD," the voice said as the man passed her, Eva recognized him. It was Tony Stark. "No hard feelings Point Break, you got a mean swing… Also, means the portal can open as wide and stay open as long as Loki wants…" Eva was about to add on, but he spoke out to the multiple techs below. "Ah, raise the mizzen mast, jib the topsails! That man is playing Galaga! Thought we wouldn't notice, but we did!"

"The rest of the raw materials, Agent Barton can get his hands on pretty easily. Only major component he still needs is a power source of high energy density. Something to kick start the Cube," Eva said, interrupting Tony's antics as Hill said something about turning. "Are you an expert in thermonuclear astrophysics?"

"As of last night. The packet, Selvig's notes, the extraction theory papers- am I the only one who did the reading?" Tony asked, before narrowing his eyes at the new arrival. "And you are?"

"I'm Evangeline Ackerman, but please call me Eva. I'm essentially the team medic and a general consultant on the sciences… I dabbled in thermonuclear astrophysics for a bit in college," Eva said, adding the last part at the glance that Tony gave her.

"Does Loki need any particular kind of power source?" Steve asked.

"He'd have to heat the Cube to a hundred and twenty million Kelvin just to break through the Coulomb barrier," Banner said.

"Unless, Selvig has figured out how to stabilize the Quantum Tunneling effect," Tony said.

"Well, if he could do that, he could achieve heavy-ion fusion at any reactor on the planet," Eva added.

"Finally. People who speak English," Tony said.

"Is that what just happened?" Steve mumbled.

"It's good to meet you, Dr. Banner. Your work on anti-electronic collisions is unparalleled," Tony said, shaking Banner's hand, before adding, "And I'm a huge fan of the way you- lose control and turn into an enormous green rage monster."

"Thanks," Banner said awkwardly.

"Doctor Banner is only here to track the Cube. I was hoping you might join him," Fury said, entering the room.

"I'd start with that stick of his. It may be magical but it works an awful lot like a HYDRA weapon," Steve added.

"I don't know about that, but it is powered by the Cube. And I like to know how Loki used it to turn two of the sharpest men I know into his personal flying monkeys," Fury said, crossing his arms.

"Monkeys? I do not understand?" Thor asked.

"I do!" Steve said, a little too excitedly, "I understood that reference."

"Shall we play?" Tony asked, and to Eva's surprise he seemed to be referring to both Banner and her.

"Ms. Ackerman," Coulson said, "is to start taking preliminary blood tests on you all… Her lab is right next to Banner's. Drop by, all of you, within the next hour."

"I guess I'll just follow you?" Eva said, following the two men down the maze of hallways.

"So, you're a nurse?" Banner asked. "And you're working with us?"

"Yeah," Eva said, "Just found out a little bit ago."

"Explains why your file was so small… didn't even have a picture," Tony said.

"I don't work for SHIELD exactly," Eva said. "I'm a consultant and one of the terms of my contract was that I have a minimal database presence…"

"Why you?" Tony asked. "You some kind of genius?"

"Hardly," Eva said, resisting the urge to snort, "apparently it's because of my knowledge of SHIELD but my separation for it… Makes you all trust me easier to treat you like people and not use you as lab rats. All of my test results are stored on a private server that SHIELD is legally not allowed to touch and has no way of accessing."

"How'd you swing that?" Banner asked. "SHIELD likes to get their hands in anything."

"Honestly," Eva said, "no idea… I was recruited based off of the word of a good agent, so I assume it had something to do with that _glowing_ recommendation, and I made it clear that I wouldn't come work with them unless they could guarantee that."

"Interesting," Tony mused, looking at the woman next to him.

"Here's my lab," Banner said before pointing to the one next to his lab, "and I guess that's yours?"

"Guess so," Eva said, "don't assume either of you gentlemen would like to be poked first?"

"That's all you," Banner said, giving Tony a pat on the back before entering his lab.

"Shall we, Stark?" Eva asked, opening the door.

"We shall," he said, smirking as he entered the room.

"So," I said, "you're the Iron Man, huh?"

"That I am," he said. "Please don't tell me you're a fan."

"I'm more a fan of the man who's into renewable energy," Eva said. "Just sit right there."

"Environmental activist?"

"More of person who wants the world to be a better place," Eva said, grabbing a needle to get some blood. "Which arm?"

"Left," he said.

"So, how does that," Eva asked, motioning towards the glowing circle in his chest, "work?"

"That's a secret," he said.

"Okay," Eva said, wiping his arm with some rubbing alcohol to disinfect it, "but there's no chance it breaks during this stint, right?"

"No chance," he said.

"Good," Eva said, "because as much as I've studied, I don't think – this is going to pinch – that I would be much help if it breaks." She poked his vein with a needle and began to draw blood.

"Once you finish up with this for everyone," Tony said, "you should come help Banner and I… three minds are better than two."

"I just might…" Eva said, grinning.

They then reviewed Tony's medical history, and as Eva was sending him away, he turned to face her.

"I'll send Banner in?"

"Sounds great," Eva said, "Thanks."

"One question for you," he asked, leaning against the frame of the door.

"Shoot."

"Why did SHIELD want you to work for them?" he asked. "Do you have some amazing credentials?"

"Like I said," Eva said, preparing for Banner's tests, "I have no idea… Just woke up one day to Agent Coulson outside of my door and then before I knew it, I had signed a contract to work as a consultant… Also meant that I got to skip a residency and go straight into working, even if it's a combo of nursing and other sciences…."

"Huh," Tony said. "Well, I'll go get Banner."

"Thanks," Eva said.

One by one, every member of the team made their way to Eva's lab.

Banner.

Natasha.

Thor.

And finally, Steve.

"Is this a good time?" Steve asked from the doorway. Eva turned to face him.

"Yeah," she said, "I was going to go chase you down, if I didn't get you in here soon."

"I'm here now, so no worries ma'am."

"Ma'am?" Eva asked mockingly. "It's Eva, _super soldier_. Thought you'd remember that, Steve."

"Right," Steve said, "Eva."

"Just sit there," she said, fanning through his files. "Most of your stuff is up to date, so I think we shouldn't have to do to any tests… I know you don't like getting blood drawn."

"That's true."

"So how have you been?" Eva asked, checking some stuff on his forms. "You explored the world at all?"

"Not really," Steve confessed. "What about you? Temporary fix turned permanent, huh?"

"Life is crazy."

"So why were you brought on?"

"Apparently," Eva said, setting down the files, "they liked my insistence of patient confidentiality and figured others might appreciate the same thing… you're good to go."

"Thanks," he said. "I'll be seeing you around, I suppose."

"Assuming you don't jump into action before then," Eva said. "Bye Steve."

He left, giving Eva time to input the information into her computer. She grew bored after a few minutes after starting the blood tests and decided that she needed a change of scenery. She left her small lab and went next door.

Knocking lightly before opening the door, Eva was met with the gazes of Tony and Banner.

"Any more room at this testosterone party?" she asked, giving a small smile.


End file.
